Why?
by QueenEphiny
Summary: Did the other guardians ever bother to find out what happened when Jack left them to go take Sophie home? Did they ever even bother to find out about his memories? This fic shows all, and maybe some of them, can find love along the way ;) ONE-SHOT! Jack/Tooth


SOMETHINGS WILL BE CHANGED SOME WILL BE DIFFERENT AND SOME WILL BE ADDED SO ENJOY! OH AND I DON'T OWN RISE OF THE GUARDIANS THOUGH I WISH I DID!

E. Aster Bunnymund looked up from tending to his eggs to see the coloured lights twinkling in the warren. He groaned and put the eggs he was painting back down on the ground, giving them a slight push in the direction of the striping vines. "What's the matter now aye, so close to Easter," he grumbled, tapping his large paw on the ground. A tunnel opened up and he jumped in, bouncing as fast as he could along the tunnel walls. A couple of minutes later he poked his head out of the tunnel only to be covered in a large rift of snow.

"Fair dinkum mate, who the hell put that there?" he question, looking around wildly. Grumbling to himself the large rabbit crawled out from under the pile and brushed the remaining snowflakes from his fur. "I hate travelling here, it always gets me covered in snow, stupid North for not letting me make holes in his workshop," he growled, marching towards the ornate covered front doors.

Heaving them open he marched inside only to be knocked over from behind by a large green and blue blur. "Sorry Bunny, didn't see you there, do you know what this is about?" Tooth questioned, helping him back onto his feet. "Nah we should probably go find the big guy and let him explain," he said, already strolling off in the direction of North's office.

"Ah my friends are here no, we all come in and have nice chat," North greeted, pulling them inside and pushing them into chairs. Sandy waved from his perch on a cloud of his sand, a mug of hot chocolate in his hand. "What about hey, I didn't come all this way from my eggs so close to Easter just to have a chat," Bunny said, sitting down warily. "Yes yes I know this we going to talk about Jack," North explained, sitting down with a mug of his own. "Why what'd the little bugger do this time, I swear he's always getting into trouble," Bunny complained sitting back a bit.

"It's not what Jack's done but what he hasn't done," North answered cryptically. The other Guardians groaned they hated when North spoke like this.

"Okay, I tell you. Have any of you noticed how Jack is.. distant. He sort of lingers on outside, like he not trust us. I worry that given time he will try to leave and we will not be able to find him, he will not fall for tricks to get him here this time if that happens. I am worried that Jack does not fully feel accepted, like he is not part of Guardians," North explained, his face gravelly set.

"If I may make an observation this may have to be with what happened on Easter," the Tooth Fairy said, her wings slightly drooping at the mention of it. Sandy looked on frustrated as the other Guardians agreed, ever since Pitch's nightmare sand had hit him the little man had been unable to find out what had happened when he was gone, the others seemed ashamed to talk about it.

Sandy made several signs above his head, one of Jack, several of the Guardians then an angry face between them. "Yes Sandy we had an argument of sorts," Bunny sighed, rubbing his paw over his face. "Guys I may have an idea of how we can find out what happened after he left, because you know maybe it will help," Tooth nodded excitedly and zoomed off towards North's sleigh. "I am sticking with my tunnels mate I'll meet you there," Bunny said strongly, opening up and tunnel and zipping quickly towards Tooth's Palace.

Just as Bunny emerged from his tunnel he heard the joyous laughter of North and ducked just in time to avoid being clobbered in the head with the sleigh. "Oy mate watch where you're going ay," he yelled shaking his balled up paw. "Relax Bunny we were just having fun yes, okay now Tooth what is this idea you speak of?" North questioned. Tooth nodded and beckoned for them to follow her. She lead them down many long corridors before she came to a sealed off room with a door of icy blue metal.

There were several more of these types of doors dotting down the hall, each with a different design. Quickly keying in the password the door swung open at Tooth's touch and revealed an amazing sight beyond. Thousands of snowflakes drifted through the cold air, never touching but always moving. In the very centre of the room lay a golden case of memories on a silver pedestal. "This is Jack's memory room, isn't it Tooth?" Bunny questioned, moving forwards.

"Yes all immortals have one, this hallway was made specially for the Guardians though. The golden case are his memories before he became an immortal. And each of these snowflakes is one of his memories from after he became Jack Frost," Tooth explained zipping around, searching for something. "I found it," Tooth cheered, holding up the small, delicate object. "Well how do we watch it?" North asked looking confused. "Like this, everyone grab one of the spikes," Tooth instructed. The Guardians moved to do what she asked, each holding an ice section.

"Okay now whaaaaaaaat" Bunny yelled as he was sucked into the memory, landing heavily on the hard road. The Guardians watched as Jack balanced on the windowsill outside Sophie's room, gazing around heavily.

"_Maybe we should get back," Jack Frost told Baby Tooth as he closed the window to Sophie's room, an abashed look on his face._

_The two were about to start flying back to the Warren when they heard a young girl's voice call, "Jack."_

The Guardians exchanged puzzled looks, looking around for who called his name.

_Jack stopped, looking around in confusion while Baby Tooth flitted in the air nervously. "Jack?" the voice called again._

"_Did you hear that, I.. I know that voice, but how?" Jack asked Baby Tooth, staring out across the land. _

"_Jack," the voice called urgently, and Jack took off towards it, Baby Tooth behind him._ _The voice continued calling out in a high desperate voice as Jack and Baby Tooth followed it, eventually ending up in the middle of a forest. In the centre of a small clearing stood a rotting bed frame, the source of the noise._

"Is that the entrance to Pitch's lair?" Tooth said incredulously, staring at the old rotted frame with unbridled disgust. Nobody else said anything, and the memory continued in silence.

_Baby Tooth pulled on Jack's hoddie, trying to get him to turn back. "Don't worry, there's still time," Jack said distractedly as he walked towards the bed frame. Baby Tooth rolled her eyes but followed him, hoping to keep him out of trouble._ _Under the bed frame was a hole, completely dark and seemingly bottomless. Jack broke away the rotting wood above the hole and stared down into it, trying to find the bottom._

"_Jack?" the voice called one more time, and Jack jumped in the hole, Baby Tooth behind him._

"That curiosity's gonna get him killed one day, I swear he has to know everything" Bunny remarked tonelessly. The others nodded in agreement and turned back to the memory.

_Jack and Baby Tooth found themselves in a massive cave. Baby Tooth tried again to get Jack to turn back, sensing danger. "Baby Tooth, come on, I have to find out what that is. I have to know who knows who I am" Jack insisted as he ventured further in the cave._ _The sound of tweeting pulled Jack's attention to one of the large cages hanging from the ceiling. Inside were hundred of the baby tooth fairies trying in vain to escape._

Tooth gasped, staring in horror at the cages. "How _dare_ he. How dare he treat my little babies like that. I should have knocked all his other teeth out?" she whispered, shocked that even Pitch would be so cruel to such innocent little creatures.

"_Hang on guys, I'm gonna get you out, just as soon as-" "Jack," "-I can," Jack said looking again for the source of the voice. Baby Tooth twittered hurriedly, trying to get Jack to open the cages. "Okay Baby Tooth, can you guys fly out if I open the door?" he asked expecting an affirmative. They shook their heads and a few tried to fly, lifting their heavy wings but getting nowhere. "Okay I just have to find something to carry you in give me a second," he said. Baby Tooth nodded and stayed with her friends, talking to them urgently._

_Jack flew through a large set of doors just of the cage room and found mountains of tooth containers, holding countless memories, among which was presumably his. A look of longing passed over his face and he dove into the pile, grabbing containers at random and checking the faces printed on the ends. Just as he shook himself out of the daze and prepared to leave a voice called to him, "Jack come down Jack!" It sounded worried but at the same time like it was laughing._

"_Looking for something?" a silky voice oozed from the shadows. Jack spun around, shooting ice from his staff before flying off towards the source of the voice. Pitch's laughter echoed off the walls._

The Guardians exchanged nervous looks, breaking their focus from the memory for a second. Even though they knew the outcome and knew Jack was alright now, this situation was terrifying.

"_Don't be afraid Jack," Pitch said as he strolled down a slanted corridor._ "_Afraid? I'm not afraid of you," Jack said as he fell against a wall, groping for an exit._ "_Maybe not. But you are afraid of something." Pitch whispered, slinking through the shadows._ "_You think so, huh?"_

_Pitch turned around. "I know so. It's the one thing I always know. People's greatest fears, what turns their heart to stone, what makes them scream and cry out in fear. I know everyone's fear. Even yours, little Jackson Overland the boy in the pond" Pitch grinned at Jack. "Yours is that no one will ever believe in you. That you'll spend the rest of eternity being walked through and forgotten, never seen and never loved" Pitch started walking toward Jack, who stepped back in shock. He had never told anyone that. Pitch laughed again as Jack fell through the floor and into the darkness._

Bunny shifted uncomfortably on his hind paws. He knew Jack didn't have any believers before, but that had never seemed to bother the fun-loving trouble maker before. He just laughed it off and continued on. What else was Jack hiding beneath the laughter?

"_And worst of all, you're afraid you'll never know why." Jack stood up, jumping away from the darkness and into another corridor, back against the wall in fear. "Why you? Why were you chosen to be like this? Why would the MiM put you here like this, no reason, no purpose just a name. Jack Frost" _

It pained Tooth to know Jack had been left wondering for so long. She had never heard of an immortal losing their memories; they normally kept them, even if some were slightly fuzzy after a while. It never even crossed her mind that Jack might need his, another reason for him not to trust them and it seemed Pitch had noticed to.

_Pitch materialized in front of Jack, holding out a memory container. "All these years you could have known about your past if only you had gotten your teeth. Then the first time they need your help, even acknowledge your existence in over 300 years they hang them over you like a prize. Saying if you help them you can have your memories back, your very being. It's like their stealing a part of you Jack and offering it to you as a prize. They seem to think you owe them something. Your life has been hard oh little Frost, will they ever actually let you get them back or will they just keep hanging them over your head?"_

The Guardians who were watching shifted uncomfortably, they hadn't thought using his memories as a bargaining chip would be cruel. They just needed his help. A sudden thought seemed to strike all of them, what Pitch was saying was right. They ignored him for 300 years, kidnap him in a sack, expect him to help them then blackmail him when he refuses. What kind of Guardians are they if they couldn't even protect a child when he needed them most.

"_But fear not. For the answer to all your questions is right here." The container had a picture of a brown-haired boy with a mischievous grin. Jack stared at it, his face a mixture of fear, shock and hope._

Sandy watched with interest. The only reason Jack originally agreed to help the Guardians was to regain his memories. But was he willing to trust Pitch to just give them to him, without a reason? Sandy didn't feel to guilty about Jack, he was friends with the boy before he became a guardian. They would help each other. Sandy would chase away the nightmares that haunted him and Jack would help him find the kids with very bad dreams.

"_Do you want them Jack? Your memories?" Pitch grinned at the look of yearning on Jack's face. Jack reached out, about to touch it, when he seemed to reconsider, drawing back his hand and turning to face the door. "No I can't! Leave me alone and don't ever hurt my friends again," he ordered, turning around he started walking back towards the cage rom. Pitch and the container disappeared, Pitch's laugh echoing in the shadows as he shut the door to the room. Jack ran down long corridors towards Pitch._

"_Everything you wanted to know, in this little box." Jack chased the shadows. "Why did you end up like this? Unseen. Unable to reach out to anyone." "I don't want the box you horrible man I want you to release my friends," he shouted, attempting to catch him. _

North watched the scene with mounting guilt. The other Guardians did to. Even after what they had done, refusing him his memories he still tried to save the Baby Tooths.

"_You want the answers so badly. You want to grab them and fly off with them, but you're afraid of what the Guardians will think, afraid of disappointing them." Pitch's voice echoed off the walls, merged with the shadows surrounding Jack, confusing him. "Well, let me ease your mind about one thing: They'll never accept you. Not really."_

"_Stop it, STOP IT!" Jack yelled, trying to cover his ears with his hands, a task made difficult by the staff in his hand. _

All of the Guardians stared in shock at Jack's reaction. Sure, they might not have been the most accommodating, but did Jack really think they didn't want him? Still? And did he really care that much about what they thought of him? Sure, it might have taken them a while, but the Guardians did eventually accept Jack. Didn't he know that?

"_After all, you're not one of them," Pitch said, materializing behind Jack._ "_You don't know what I am." Jack spun around, raising his staff to point at Pitch. _

"_Of course I do, you're Jack Frost!" Pitch mocked. "You make a mess wherever you go. You hurt poor little people with your storms and your blizzards and your curious ways. Why, you're doing it right now," Pitch said as he tossed something at Jack. Instinctively, Jack caught the memory box that landed in his hands. His memory box. He stared at it in shock, and then, with dawning horror, he looked up at Pitch. "What did you do Pitch? What have you made ME do?" he yelled, pointing his staff at the dark man._

The Guardians watched the scene like one might watch a train wreck: horrified, but unable to look away. Their trepidation was only added to when they remembered what happened next.

"_What did you do?" Jack asked again in horror._ "_More to the point Jack, what did you do?" Pitch grinned as he held open his arms, melting back into the shadows and laughing._ _Jack ran after him, shooting frost at him, before he realized he had lost Pitch. Jack turned around, only to find himself facing a locked door._

_He banged against it. "Baby Tooth!" he shouted in panic, attempting to claw his way through. He felt a dark shadow pass over him and instinctively, swiped out._ "_Happy Easter, Jack." Jack spun around, looking for Pitch when he stepped on something. Looking down, he could see broken eggshells littering the ground._

"_No," he said in shock, running down the trail towards the Guardians._

Nobody said anything. Maybe there just wasn't anything that could be said, not now, not after so many weeks had past. The Guardians knew Jack was impulsive and reckless; his curiosity was what allowed Bunny to capture him first, his irresponsibility what made them cautious of having Jack be a Guardian. Why had it never crossed their minds, of _course_ Jack wouldn't betray them on purpose.

_Jack found the Guardians in a small town in England, late and short one Baby Tooth._ _Tooth was furious. "Where's Baby Tooth? Oh Jack, what have you done?"_ "_That is why you weren't here?" North asked. "You were with Pitch instead?"_

"_No, listen, listen… I'm sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen, I couldn't..." Jack tried to explain. The looks on their faces stopped him in his tracks he sighed and looked down at the box in his hand._

Jack would never sabotage Easter at a time when it was so important, he would never betray Baby Tooth for his memories. All of this was so obvious in retrospect, but at the time they were all too hurt, too confused to listen to and explanation.

_Bunny hopped over. "He has to go," he said without hesitation._ _Jack was stunned. "What?"_

Sandy looked as surprised as Jack, staring at Bunny with a combination of confusion and accusation.

_Bunny looked heartbroken as he said, "We should never have trusted you. Easter is new beginnings, new life. Easter is about hope." He groaned. "And now it's gone."_ _Jack turned from Bunny to look at Tooth and North. They both turned away from him. It was exactly as Pitch had warned. The Guardians didn't want him around anymore. Just like everyone else, they didn't want him._

Bunny, Tooth, and North had trouble watching the memory. They were ashamed now of what they had done, of turning away Jack when they needed each other the most. They had let their feelings get in the way, just as Jack had done when he entered Pitch's lair. The difference being he stopped and tried to save his friends, even with his memories on the line. And now they had to pay.

_Reaching into his pocket, Jack pulled out the little Russian doll North had given him in the Workshop. He stared at it for a long moment, then tossed the doll to the ground. Jack created a big gust of wind and then leaped in to the breeze, a single tear trailing down his face to be replaced with an icy mask. _

Sandy was frozen in shock as he watched Jack fly away, the others not even calling out to him, trying to stop him. Sandy's confusion morphed into rage as he glared accusingly at his fellow Guardians, none of who could meet his gaze.

_Soon Jack found himself on the top of a mountain in Antarctica, a place where it always snowed. A place where the blizzards caused by his mood mingled with the blizzards of nature, as indistinguishable as a teardrop in the rain. His face was cold and set in stone, from their places next to him the Guardians could hear him muttering._

"_Come on Jack it's not to bad. You spent 300 years on your own you can managed an eternity now. It's just the same no one really cares. You been through worse." At this the boy rolled up his sleeves and absentmindedly traced the scars that littered his arm. The guardians stared on horrified at the multiple scaring._

"_Stupid memories have to ruin everything, go to hell!" he shouted. Jack ran to the edge of the cliff, ready to throw his memories off the edge, when he stopped. He looked down at the box in his hand, at the memories he had been waiting so long to find._

"_I thought this might happen," Pitch said suddenly. Jack looked up in shock and horror. When had Pitch gotten here? How did he know where to find him? It didn't matter; Jack found his surprise being quickly replaced by anger._ "_They never really believed in you. I was just trying to show you that. But I understand." Jack spun around throwing a powerful burst of ice from his staff and screaming with unbridled rage._

"_You don't understand anything!" he screamed, throwing more ice at Pitch._ _Pitch blocked Jack's frost with nightmare sand, frustration plain on his face. "I don't know what it's like to be cast out?" he screamed, throwing out more nightmare sand._ _Jack leaped in the air, yelling as he lashed out with his most powerful hit yet. Pitch blocked it with equally powerful sand, creating a cloud of sand and ice._

"_To not be believed in? To be walked through and alone?" Jack spun around, only to find Pitch unarmed and seemingly defenceless. "To long for a family?" Jack seemed surprised by this sudden vulnerability, lowering his staff._

The Guardians were also surprised, but for different reasons. Pitch typically went with straight for fear and took his victims down with their worst nightmares. If he was going for sympathy he wanted something more than just to kill Jack. But what they didn't know.

"_All those years in the shadows, being forgotten and ridiculed. I thought no one else knows what this feels like. But now I see I was wrong, that you know just how hard it is to do your job when all you really get for it is hatred" Pitch said, gesturing towards Jack. Jack stood from his defensive stance, as if seeing Pitch in a new light. _

The Guardians were nervous. Did Jack really believe Pitch? It was low, for Pitch to use Jack's fears against him like that.

"_We don't have to be alone, Jack. I believe in you," Pitch said as he began circling Jack, who seemed deep in thought. "And I know children will too." At this Jack looked up at Pitch, hope and longing written clearly on his face. "In me? No that's wrong but.."_ "_Yes! Look at what we can do together," Pitch said as he gestured to the result of their fight. An ice sculpture made of spikes and darkened by nightmare sand._

"_What goes together better than cold and dark? Everyone hates them both, casts them aside as if they have no feelings. We'll make them believe! We'll give them a world where everything, every thing is-"_ "_Pitch black?" Pitch froze, as if realizing his mistake._ "_And they'll believe in Jack Frost, too. They'll believe in both of us."_

"_No, they'll fear both of us. And that's not what I want, I don't want to be feared. I would turn out like you" Jack hissed, turning away. "Now for the last time, leave me alone!" _ "_So what, what are you going to do, Jack?" Pitch asked patronizingly. "Are you going to go back to the Guardians? You've already seen, they don't want you."_ _Jack stopped walking, but didn't turn around. He clenched his staff tight in his hands._

"_They're only using you, Jack. You can't possibly think that they'll ever care about you. They only want you to help defeat me. And if it wasn't for the Man in the Moon, the same Moon that ignored you for centuries, they never would have contacted you. Never would have cared to see the little lonely boy in the snow"_

_Jack didn't say anything, didn't try to argue any of what Pitch said, because it was true, wasn't it?_ "_If it wasn't for MiM, they would have continued ignoring you like they did for the past three hundred years. And after this battle, what makes you think they won't ignore you again? They don't like you, don't want you, they just want to use you. Why would they want a trouble-making, chaotic winter spirit, bringer of cold and death. Your powers are not good, Jack, and they know it. Why do you think they always left you alone, if it wasn't because you were a volatile teenager that they didn't want to have to deal with. The only kid in the world that they wouldn't protect. Out of everyone. They chose to ignore you. They've never helped you; why should you help them?"_

_Jack didn't say anything, didn't move. He had that same look on his face that he had when Bunny told him no one would ever believe in him; the look that suggested he wanted to argue, but knew Bunny was right. Pitch was right. The look that said he wanted to crack a joke, brush off the situation, but was running out of fun to hide behind. That the mask he wore was cracking._

The Guardians were frozen, horrified. They knew that they hadn't treated Jack very well before, but they never thought, never realized... They had never heard it all laid out like that, so plain, so awful. And the worst part was, Jack believed Pitch. What Pitch said about the past, about the neglect and abandonment, may have been correct, but now Pitch was telling Jack that the Guardians still didn't care about him. And Jack believed him. There was no evidence to suggest otherwise.

_Pitch finished his speech. "If you want to back to them, then fine. You want to be left alone? Done! But before I go..."_ _Jack wheeled around in horror as he heard a familiar squeak. Clenched in Pitch's fist was Baby Tooth, struggling furiously. _ "_Baby Tooth!" Jack ran over to them, holding out his staff to fight even while his empty blue eyes suggested he didn't know what he was fighting for._

"_The staff, Jack!" Pitch said. Jack froze before looking down at his staff with a horror. "You have a bad habit of interfering. Now hand it over, and I'll let her go. Safe and unharmed"_ _Baby Tooth tweeted desperately, shaking her head. Jack held up his staff again, but couldn't think of what to do. The Guardians may have abandoned him, but Baby Tooth was innocent, she had never done anything wrong. And it was Jack's fault that Pitch had her now. Jack lowered his staff, considering, as Pitch's fist tightened around Baby Tooth. He finally turned over his staff, offering it to Pitch. Pitch grabbed the staff, whose frost immediately gave way to darkness. The wood almost rotting at his touch._

The Guardians were shocked once again. After everything Pitch had said, everything Jack thought about them, he was still willing to try and save Baby Tooth? To offer up his staff, the one constant in his life, presumably the source of his powers, for her?

"_Alright. Now let her go, give her to me" Jack said, holding out his hand._ "_No," Pitch said dryly. Jack stared at him in horror, not expecting this betrayal._ "_You said you wanted to be alone. So be alone!" Pitch screamed._

_Baby Tooth took this moment of distraction to stab Pitch's thumb with her beak. Pitch let out a cry of shock, hurtling Baby Tooth against the side of a mountain._

Tooth gasped at the same time that Jack screamed.

"_No!" Jack cried in horror, watching Baby Tooth slam into the mountain._ _He turned around just in time to see Pitch snap his staff in half, sending a shooting pain through his chest as he watched his faithful staff break. With an anguished cry, Jack doubled over, only to be picked up and thrown into the same mountain as Baby Tooth by the nightmare sand._

Tooth froze in shock and pain. North looked away for a moment, an immense look of guilt clouding his face. Bunny and Sandy continued to watch the memory with mounting dread and fear.

_Jack hit the mountain hard, darkness clouding his vision as he began to fall._ _He let out another cry as he hit the bottom, several things cracking. He let out a whimper of pain but otherwise he stayed silent._

Tooth started crying. Sandy created images too fast for anyone to comprehend, not that anyone was paying attention.

_Pitch looked down at Jack, laughing as he threw the broken pieces of Jack's staff down with him. The staff was now as useless as Jack himself._ _Jack laid at the bottom of the crack in the mountain, his body aching all over. Eventually he pushed himself up off the ground, holding his head, when he heard a squeak._

The Guardians were astounded at both Jack's and Baby Tooth's resilience.

"_Baby Tooth!" Jack crawled over to her. "You alright?" Baby Tooth was shivering badly and her wings appeared to be broken. Jack tried to cup her in his hands, trying to warm her up, when she squeaked again._

_He looked down at her. She shivered once more, then sneezed violently. Jack sighed. "Sorry, bad idea," he said, holding Baby Tooth away. "All I can do is keep you cold." He stared down at Baby Tooth, who was still shivering. "Pitch was right, I make a mess of everything." _

Nobody knew what to say to that. Jack was always so confident, so self assured. The Guardians knew that Jack wasn't happy all the time- nobody was, not even the Guardian of Fun. But they hadn't realized Jack had so little faith in himself, that he doubted himself at all. Sometimes, after a particularly harmful blizzard, Bunny questioned whether Jack was capable of guilt or remorse at all. Seeing him now, it was apparent that confidence was a cover up in the same way that fun was often a distraction, allowing Jack to forget about anything negative he was feeling. Because in the end he was just doing his job.

The other Guardians jobs were good and brought happiness to all of the kids. Jack's was a dangerous power, he had to create blizzards and storms because that was what the world expected. In the beginning winter was Pitch's domain, he had control over everything. The snow was harsh and cold, the storms were dark and the blizzards aimed to kill. Then Jack came along. His snow was fluffy and comforting. His storms were full of light and exciting for the children. The blizzards were in remote areas, woods and mountains that no one ever bothered to go. Jack was just doing his job but he made winter fun instead of dark.

_Baby Tooth stared at Jack for a second and shivered, before getting an idea. She hopped out of Jack's hands and onto his jacket, crawling into the pocket. Jack sighed again and leaned against the side of the mountain, closing his eyes, trying to concentrate on anything except the aching burn in his ribs. "Hey South Wind can you hear me," he whispered. He listened for a second, his head cocked to the side._

"_Please warm up Baby Tooth, she won't last otherwise," Jack whispered. A warm wind swept around Jack's pocket, emitting a squeak from inside._ _Baby Tooth tweeted as a voice, the same voice from before, called out: "Jack." Jack shot upright, scurrying back in shock as his pocket, or rather, something inside his pocket, began to glow a brilliant gold._

_He pulled his memory container out of his pocket, Baby Tooth hopping next to it. She looked down at the box and then to Jack, nodding. Jack hesitated before reaching out, brushing his fingers along the top of the box._

The Guardians shrieked as they were pulled from one memory into another. This time they all managed to land on their feet in a lightly lit cramped room. The 4 guardians watched as an old nurse handed a new born baby to the woman in bed.

"_Hello there. I'm your mummy and your my little Jackson Overland aren't you?" she cooed, gently stroking the baby's cheek. The baby nodded and gurgled, clapping his tiny hands_

The scene changed and the Guardians were once again standing at the foot of the bed, watching as she cradled the new born baby.

"_Mummy Mummy Mummy!" Jack bounced into the room, holding out his arms. He was big for a 4 year old with soft dimples and a pearly smile. "I wanna name her" he announced. "Okay dear, what would you like to name her then, and no rude ones okay," the mother smiled wearily "I think she shod be named Ella, it means beautiful fairy," Jack explained. "My own little frost fairy," Jack cooed smiling._

The Guardians watched as their surroundings changed into a green forest with large trees and young boy was hanging from the branch.

'_Come down Jack, I don't want you to fall," a little girl called. "It's okay Ella I won't fall but if it makes you happy I'll come down," he called. Flipping backwards off the branch and landing on his feet. "Hey it's okay Ella I won't let anything bad happen okay. You have to trust me, it's just a bit of fun," he said kneeling before his sister. She nodded and he pulled her into a hug, a cheeky grin making it's way onto his face._

_Slowly he reached out a hand and grabbed a handful of snow, careful not to alert his sister. Quick as a flash he had dumped the handful of ice down the back of her coat and watched as she shrieked and batted at him. "You horrid boy Jack, I'm telling Mama," she called, jumping up and down. "Aw don't do that how about I take you skating tomorrow on the old pond in the woods," Jack bargained. She nodded and squealed as he swung her up into the air and onto his shoulders._

_The scene changed for the final time and the Guardians watched as the kid's mother bid them goodbye at the door, "Be careful, don't be to late," she shut the door, getting a final glimpse of Jack's smiling face. "Come on Ella, I'll race you," Jack called. The 2 young kids ran to the frozen lake. _

The Guardians drew in deep breathes when they realised that this was Jack's pond the place he called home for 300 hundred years. They then knew that this is when it would happen, he would become a guardian. How? They didn't know.

_Ella had her skates laced up faster than her brother and was sitting waiting impatiently. "Don't go onto the ice until I can check it is safe Ella!" Jack called, bending over his boots and lacing the ties. Ella glanced over at Jack and getting impatient she skated out onto the centre of the ice. Jack looked up startled as he heard a shrill scream. "Ella! Wait __there I'm coming to get you!" he called. Jack quickly ripped off his skates and grabbed a nearby branch._

The Guardians recognised it with a sinking feeling, it was Jack's staff, the source of his power.

_A Large crack was forming around Ella's feet as jack stationed himself a metre away from her. "It's ok, It's ok! Don't look down, just…Look at me" Jack knelt on one knee as he tried to calm his sister. "Jack, I'm scared!" Ella's quivering voice sounded as the cracked became deeper and wider. Jack grimaced as he saw Ella shaking._

_"I know, I know" Jack reassured, a large crack began to form under his feet. "But you're gonna be alright, you're not going to fall in!" Jack said in a shaky voice, he looked around trying to find a solution._

_"We're gonna have a little fun instead-" "NO WE'RE NOT!" Ella cried out, "Would I trick you?" Jack said lightly, "Yes! You ALWAYS play tricks" Ella quivered as jack inched towards her._

_"Well…Not this time" Jack tried "I Promise-I promise. You're gonna be fine. You have to believe in me…" _

_The Guardians watched on terrified for their friend. Tooth was silently crying and the male Guardians looked close to it._

_Ella took a shuddering breath in,_

_"You wanna play a game? We're gonna play hopscotch, like we play everyday. It's as easy as 'One'" Jack took a small step to the side and shuddered when a large crack echoed. "Two" "Three!" Jack finished as he landed on solid ice,_

_"Alright. Now it's your Turn" Jack said as he grabbed the branch he had grabbed from the side of the frozen lake. "One" Ella took a small slide foreword on her skates as Jack positioned his staff, a small crack followed her. Jack mumbled reassuring words as she slid a little more towards him._

_"Two" Ella gasped as more cracks filled the ice around her, making horrible grinding noises._

_"THREE!" Jack grabbed his sister's waist using his staff and flung her back towards the edge of the pond, switching places with her due to the momentum. "JACK! Come in now Jack, hurry before the ice breaks to much!" Ella screamed. Jack just shook his head sadly and didn't move. "Jack! Please come over here, come on! TRY!" she screamed. Jack took a shuddering breath and squared his shoulders._

"_Goodbye Ella, tell Mama I love her and I want you to remember, this wasn't your fault. I should have been faster," he gave one last toothy, if slightly sad smile, and took a step forward. The ice under him cracked and split, sending Jack into the icy depths. "JACK PLEASE NO! MAMA MAMA!" Ella ran screaming back towards the house._

_Jack lay frozen under the water his chest slowly stopped moving._

The Guardians stood frozen in shock. Jack had died. That's how he became an immortal. That's how he became a guardian.

_The memory faded leaving them standing next to Jack in the canyon again. His still form gazing down at the memory tube. Several small squeaks emitted from his pocket. "You know what Baby Tooth, if I can save my sister then surely I can save others like her. Those who actually need and want me," he whispered._

The Guardians hearts clenched. He still thought they didn't want him.

"First how to fix this," Jack mused crawling over to his staff, wincing when he irritated his ribs. He had obviously broken something. Jack's face lit up and he summoned one of the winds. He placed his staff in the snow, still clasping it in his hand. He closed his eyes and appeared to be concentrating very hard. A strange blue light began glowing from his hands, covering the staff. A blinding flash of light lit the cavern and when it was done and exhausted jack lay down, holding a newly mended staff.

"Come on Baby Tooth let's go save the children," he said offering his hand. She chirped and jumped on. He hugged her close to his chest, wincing when he brushed his ribs. "North Wind take us to Jamie's house." He whispered. A howling filled the air then the Guardians were deposited back into the memory room. "I think I speak for all of us when I say whoa mate just whoa. The kid died, was left on his own for 300 years then made to join the Guardians against his will. How the hell does that boy stay as happy as he is? And has anyone else realised that he fought that last battle against Pitch with broken ribs?" Bunny asked.

The others shrugged. "Oh my toys we better get back. Jack will be back from his snow duties soon," North exclaimed. They hurried to the sleigh, Bunny not complaining for once. A couple of minutes later they were back at the North Pole and were piling out of the sleigh. They heard a whoop of joy from outside and went to investigate. They all gaped as they were met with the sight of a giant ice mansion just outside the workshop.

They all rushed to go investigate and upon looking inside laughed. Jack it seemed had decided to bring some fun to the yetis. The entire mansion was a fun zone. There was elf bowling, an ice skating rink and more arcade games. "Blimey that kids good," Bunny commented they all nodded absentmindedly. They followed the whoops to the outside where a huge ice slide had been set up.

Jack was currently surfing down it followed by several yetis. "Hey guys what's up?" he asked, jumping off. Tooth stared at him for a few seconds before she broke down in sobs. "Tooth. Tooth are you okay? Tooth?" Jack asked worried. Tooth darted down and wrapped him in a hug, not noticing his wincing as she grabbed his ribs.

Bunny growled and walked forward, making Tooth take a step back. "Lift up your jumper mate," he ordered. Jack shook his head and backed up a bit. "Why? I'm fine. Nothing to see," he said, covering his chest with his arms. Bunny shook his head and stalked forward, ripping off his jumper. Tooth gasped as she saw his chest. There were soft gauzy bandages wrapped around his ribs but that wasn't all.

Scars littered his chest and stomach in various shapes and sizes. Some were small and looked suspiciously like burns others were large and appeared quite deep. "Give. Me. Back. My. Jumper. Now" Jack growled, holding out his hand. Bunny passed it to him quietly, still shocked at all the scars. "That's it your coming with me to the infirmary now. To get those ribs checked out," Tooth ordered, grabbing his hand. Jack tried to protest but she shot him a look of such anger that he consented and allowed himself to be pulled along.

"You guys can have fun on my slide if you want!" he called back with a cheeky grin. The others saw through this and noticed how his eyes held a slight glint of some unknown emotion. Tooth dragged Jack through the workshop and into the deserted corridors that lead to the infirmary. Just as they were about to enter she broke down crying. Jack caught her and ignoring the pain in his ribs held her close, stroking her soft feathers.

"I'm so sorry, it's all my fault," she sobbed. Jack shook his head and leant down so he was face to face with her. "It's not Tooth. Hey its okay. Come on let's get these ribs checked out. Yeah," Jack murmured, pulling her into the infirmary. Tooth sat patiently while the yeti nurse tended to Jack's ribs. Unfortunately he had to take off his jumper and leave it off for the rest of the day.

The yeti wanted Jack to stay in the infirmary for the rest of the week but Jack managed to convince her only for the night. "Can I... Can I touch you?" Tooth asked a resting Jack. He was laid out on the hospital bed with his eyes closed and his staff tucked into the corner of the room. He nodded and Tooth moved forward slowly so not to startle him.

She carefully reached out a hand and laid it on his cold chest, feeling the muscle rippling beneath her hand as she caressed the skin. Jack sighed and she felt a small smile cover her lips. She slowly ran her hand up and down his chest, paying special attention to his larger scars. Meanwhile Jack was slowly beginning to relax into Tooth's caresses.

300 years of not being touched in a nice way, Tooth realised. She wondered if since he had been an immortal he had gotten a hug. Making sure to be careful of his ribs she climbed into the bed next to him. The drugs the yeti had given him had sort of made him woozy. "Hey Tooth, what are you doing in my bed?" he asked, looking down at her. "Giving you a hug," she answered laying her head on his chest and wrapping her arms carefully around his chest.

'Thanks Tooth," he sighed pulling her close. "Your welcome Jack, we do care about you, you do know that right?" she asked, looking up at him with violet eyes. "Yeah I know Tooth sometimes its hard though. I'm not used to being around other immortals," he whispered lookin over at his staff propped against the wall. Contemplating if he would reach it before she could catch him, he would be out the window and free in seconds.

As if she read his thoughts she grabbed his chin and turned his face to meet hers, "We are your family Jack. We will never stop being your family." She whispered. He smiled shyly and her eyes widened with a glimpse of his pearly teeth. "Thanks Tooth," he sighed. Slowly Tooth drew herself up his body till she was looking right into his eyes, her lips descended down and met his, she gently drew her arms up and around his neck, holding him closer.

He responded eagerly, wrapping his arms around her soft waist and pulling her flush against him. His cold firm lips like snowflakes ghosted gently across her warm ones that felt like the finest silk. She noticed that he smelt of pine cones and crisp snow while he realised she was like rainfall and flowers on a spring day, burrowing her hands into his hair she deepened the kiss, moaning slightly as his tongue slipped through her lips.

His first reaction was one of absolute pleasure, she tasted of wild berries and mint. She would have given up all of her tooth morals right there just to devour him, he tasted like hot chocolate and cookies. He moved his hands down to her lower back, drawing comforting shapes on her back. They finally broke the kiss after what seemed like forever, their foreheads pressed together. "Toothiana I have been in love with you since I first laid eyes on you, your beauty and your passion overwhelmed me and captured my heart. I hope you can find it within you to love a scarred boy like me," he finished sadly, looking down.

"Jack I don't care what you think I love you so much and if I can spend the rest of eternity it would be to soon. I love you so much and I want to spend the rest of my life proving it to you," Tooth said, pulling Jack's head up to capture him in another heated kiss.

The other guardians stood outside the door, "Hah I told ya North, now pay up. They got together before the next Easter," Bunny said as they walked away. "Stupid little Bunny, I turn you into hamster for Christmas," North muttered. Sandy just walked away amused and joyous. Those 2 had finally admitted how they felt.

Inside the 2 occupants traded their heated kisses, content to finally be in the others arms.


End file.
